Saturday, January 17, 2009

Miri Landslide Ground Zero Report - day 2

Day 2, 7:00AM, 17 Jan 2009. We now knew that there were two casualties ... one of them started work only a few days ago. I was pondering... we can never predict tomorrow. So live today as if there is no tomorrow. But how? I think I can just show a little kindness to everyone. Don't quarrel over tiny things.
The ground had been cleared yesterday. There was traffic jam everywhere yesterday. It was the first time in Miri where we had traffic jam for a KM. By the way, you can click on any photos to see a larger ones. I have to limit the size of photos as the free space for photos is only 1GB!

On this photo, you see the white building on the left. That is the "service center". On the right, you see a rectangular structure on the ground. That is the roof of the "office" and convenient shop. These two structures are supposed to be joint together.

A closeup view of the roof for office/shop. The microwave disc is still there.

The structure is supposed to be joint to this "service center". The force of the earth movement pushed the two structures apart like a match box. The office/shop below the roof was completely "disintegrated" and "disappeared". From a photo in my blog yesterday, you could see an ice cream freezer.

The thick concrete (10 inches/25 cm) at the back of the station broke like match stick!
So, this small retaining wall is no match for the tons of earth sliding down. Now, this should serve as a awakening call to those people who build flimsy retaining wall for their properties. If landslide really happen, those walls are useless unless they are properly designed by expert and properly re-enforced with steel.

2 comments:

David Chin said...

William,
Thanks for sharing these photos. I received them from a friend, Chang Yi.

David
(ex-Miri, another blogger!)
http://davidchin38.blogspot.com

William said...

David, indeed it is a surprise to hear from you. I hope all is well with your family. Our regards to your wife whom we know so well.

Anonymous, wives grumble because as a second party they can see thing from a different perspective. They see things that he cannot/fail to see. He should be appreciative. Releasing of feeling should receive +ve support and not being shout back. Perhaps he wanted you to be like a log! Or perhaps he is under a lot of pressure also. I am not sure what you mean by "grumble" but perhaps next time try asking it this way: "Have you consider ...", "What do you think ...", "How about ...", ... etc.